Marqt Open on Sundays

marqt elke dag openOn my last trip there, I found out that concept supermarket Marqt is now open on Sundays!

I am torn about Marqt, which promises to sell only fresh, local produce. It’s definitely much better than Albert Heijn. But it’s also expensive and inconsistent in food quality.

Apart from the cool market hall inspired design, I like the bread and the herbs. The bread is fresh and has a more flavor and density than most other suppliers’. The herbs stand out in aroma, especially the giant leaved basil. There is a good selection of fresh herbs and they last for quite a while in the plastic packaging they are sold in. Marqt also has a good selection of fish.

The produce that does not meet foodie standards includes the meat and most of the canned vegetables and sauces. The cans seem to be mostly high end brands that charge a lot of money for marginally better quality. And the chicken I bought on several occasions was incredibly expensive and very watery.

Given the difficulties of procuring any food on a Sunday in Amsterdam, I will certainly make more trips to Marqt now that it’s open on Sundays.

Getting a Reservation at Restaurantweek Amsterdam

The next spring edition of Amsterdam Restaurantweek takes place March 2nd to 8th, 2009. I am torn about it. It’s a great idea but also has two serious flaws here in Amsterdam.

During Restaurantweek  more than 650 restaurants across the Netherlands offer a fixed price set lunch for € 20,- or a fixed price set dinner for € 25,-. The idea is to provide for an easy way for present and future foodies to try out new restaurants – especially the better and usually more expensive ones.

The first problem is that the majority of participating restaurants either lacks the required quality or has the wrong attitude. € 25,- plus drinks for a set dinner simply isn’t such a great deal at average restaurants such as Heerlijk. And then there are good restaurants that lower the quality of food and service beyond belief for restaurantweek. Klein Jansen is an example. Rather than promote their restaurant, they try to make a quick Euro.

Secondly, booking a table at a good restaurant is very hard. Reservations must be made through a special restaurantweek site. Reservations will open February 4th at 10am and many people will log in and bring the system down.

You can improve your chances of getting a table at a good restaurant by signing up for the Diningcity newsletter. Subscribers will be emailed a user name and password that will allow them to make reservations on February 2nd at 12pm.

And you should know which restaurants you want to make a reservation at. So check out the list of participating restaurants and decide up front where you want to go. Some interesting options in Amsterdam are Michelin decorated La Rive and Ron Blaauw or new and notoriously busy hot spot Momo.

dining city buzz restaurantweek 2009

Tempus Two Recommended by Het Parool

tempus two spring rock verdelhoJust read an article in Het Parool in which wine expert Harold Hamersma recommends Tempus Two – one of my favorite white wines.

The article is a write-up of a three day event for wine professionals organized by The Winesite as part of the Horecava 2009.

There are a number of rather standard recommendations for Alsace Riesling or Champs des Murailles Corbières. But Hamersma also recommends a new Tempus Two Moscato – available at wine store Ton Overmars. I can’t wait to try it!

I buy a lot of wine from Ton who personally has made several great recommendations. About a year ago he suggested a Tempus Two Verdelho. I have had several good Verdejo wines from the up and coming Spanish Rueda region and decided to try out their Australian cousin. The Tempus Two Verdelho Spring Rock is amazing. It sort of has it all: a full body and plenty of spicy flavor of the Verdejo grape; fresh fruity acidity; and great balance and finish.

I think it’s definitely worth a trip to Ton to pick up some Tempus Two Moscato alongside some Verdelho and maybe some other suggestion he surely has!

Trattoria di Donna Sofia – van Dam 9, dutchgrub 6-

Restaurant critic Johannes van Dam recently awarded Trattoria di Donna Sofia a 9 on a scale of 10. I think it’s a 6- at best.

Donna Sofia is located on the corner of 2e Anjeliersdwarsstraat and Anjeliersstraat. Good Italian restaurants in Amsterdam are few and far between, so I remembered when we were in the area and trying to decide where to have dinner. And I thought it would be fun to review van Dam’s review!

trattoria donna sofia - menu boardWe got a table and I ordered some of the dishes that van Dam raved about. Zucchini parmigiana, scaloppine with truffle sauce and panna cotta. We also had involtini, rigatoni with eggplant sauce and tiramisu. The service was prompt, friendly and attentive. The restaurant was small and had an authentic trattoria feel. And the food was good. Especially van Dam’s recommendations, the sauce with real truffles (“a triumph”) and the panna cotta (“perfect consistency”).

Unfortunately not all dishes had the same quality. The involtini were served lukewarm. The rigatoni were undercooked. The meat of the scallopine was too thick and chewy. And the tiramisu had a strange spongy consistency and was too sweet.

trattoria donna sofia - ripassoVan Dam called the wine list short but extensive and settled for the house wine. We were delighted to find a ripasso on the list – our favorite wine and quite popular in Amsterdam these days. Unfortunately it was the worst ripasso I have had in a long time with little body and completely lacking the ripasso’s usual smoothness.

Finally there were inexcusable issues with the basics. The water carafe had a nasty cloudy film and the bread was cheap baguette that seemed to have come from the Albert Heijn around the corner.

Unfortunately the quest for good Italian restaurants continues. When you’re in the Jordaan and want Italian food, I find Cafe de Curtis much better than Donna Sofia.

Sauerkids Exhibition Extended until January 31st

When writing about average at best tapas bar La Oliva in the Jordaan I mentioned a great exhibition of the Sauerkids at gallery KochxBos in the 1e Anjeliersdwarsstraat.

I saw that you were quite interested in the topic and wanted to let you know that the exhibition has been extended by one week until January 31st.

KochxBos is a great gallery in the heart of the Jordaan. Most Amsterdam galleries tend to focus on supposedly well selling but arguably boring abstract works of modern art. KochxBos is different. Owners Esther Koch and Hans Bos take an interest in what they call underground art and may also be referred to as urban art. Regardless of the correct term the featured artists play with the surreal. A recurring theme of the featured works is a bright happiness on the surface that unexpectedly, sometimes shockingly, transforms into gloom on further inspection.

Past exhibitions have included phantastical Femke Hiemstra who was recently featured on Boing Boing, photographer Marjo van den Boomen and the three dimensional digital models of Ray Ceasar.

Sauerkids is an artist duo from Rotterdam. They have day-time jobs as graphic designers and started Sauerkids as a creative outlet and – as they say – for laughs. In a rather short amount of time, they have been featured in several art magazines and participated in a number of exhibitions.

The exhibition at KochxBos focuses on their paintings; bright and poppy collages of comic figures full of fear and doubt. The paintings are large, acrylic on wood and super fun to watch. I also liked how the gallery painted its walls in bubblegum pink to submerge the visitor in the Sauerkids world.

The gallery is open Monday to Saturday until 6pm. Go check out the Sauerkids, then head for a few Floreffe abbey brews at Cafe de Tuinen just down the street and have dinner at Balthazar’s keuken, one of the best restaurants in Amsterdam and just around the corner.

flyer sauerkids exhibition at kochxbos

kek – New Organic Lunch Place with Wireless

kek amsterdam - door hangerUpdate: Kek closed doors in late July 2011. A sign on the window says that a new restaurant called “Doordagt” will open in late August.

Hoofddorpplein has a new organic lunch place with free wireless. kek – short for “kant en klaar” or ready to eat – opened doors in January and has frequently looked busy!

Hoofddorpplein is a square with shops and restaurants in a working class neighborhood just past the far end of Vondelpark. It won’t make it to the top of Amsterdam tourist sights. But it does have a number of interesting food stores and restaurants including well-known wine store Ton Overmars, recently opened Italian wine dealer Vino di Pino, eetcafe Gent aan de Schinkel, a kitchen store, an organic food store and now kek.

The interior of kek was completely redone. The owners turned what used to be a gift store into a modern and bright lunch location. The design signals healthy and the furniture is simple with a lot of wood and country style folding tables. There is a long bench along the side wall that nicely connects the small tables.

Owners Piet Hein and Frederique run kek and create a very friendly atmosphere. When I visited for the first time, Frederique found time to sit down and explain the menu choices and Piet Hein appeared from the kitchen to personally deliver the food. Other guests, including the owner’s parents, shared their positive thoughts about the food and decor.

The food is simple but good. The sandwiches are made from fresh ingredients on thick slices of dark bread. While not masterpieces, a nice step up from the all too frequent bread and cheese. kek also serves simple dishes such as soups and pasta. All dishes are available in the restaurants and also to go – hence the name “kant en klaar”.

Besides the welcoming service, my highlights were the house wine and the free wireless. The wine is provided by Ton Overmars – a nice touch to help your neighboors. And the bright and open design combined with free wireless makes Kek an ideal destination for checking email or writing a blog post while enjoying lunch.

kek
www.kek.nu
Hoofddorpplein 29, 1059 CW Amsterdam, Tel +31 (0)20 753 94 03

kek amsterdam - interior and open kitchen